N. N. Light's Book Heaven presents prolific author Susie Black and her recent release #authorspotlight #books #humorousmystery #cozymystery #womensfiction #holidaymystery #booksworthreading
- N. N. Light
- Jun 18
- 11 min read
Hello. Please allow me to introduce myself. I am Susie Black, an award-winning author of seven published cozy mysteries and one women’s fiction to date.
Like the protagonist in my Holly Swimsuit Mystery series, I was a ladies’ apparel sales exec. From the beginning of my career, I kept a daily journal that chronicled the quirky, interesting, and often challenging people I encountered and the crazy situations I got myself into and out of. The journal entries are the foundation of all my writing for The Holly Swimsuit Mystery Series.
One thing I’d been told over and over as a sales exec was to know your product inside out. I heard the same thing when I started writing cozy mysteries: write what you know. If you don’t know it, either do the research and learn it or don’t dare to write it. Whether you’re an author or a sales exec, you’re selling yourself, and readers, like buyers, can sniff out a phony in a heartbeat, and then you and your story are toast. So, where did my story ideas come from? With a dollop of imagination, a pinch of angst, and a decades-long career chocked to the gills with juicy characters, I had more stories in my daily journal than time to write them.
I came to write in the cozy mystery genre because I love solving puzzles. My parents would certainly confirm I always asked questions, and I am naturally curious (some narrow-minded people say I am nosy…go figure…LOL). So, writing mysteries was the natural next step for me to take. Who could push a sales exec to dream of murder and mayhem? Who else but a buyer? After completing a rather challenging conversation with an important, but difficult customer, I silently wished her a slow and painful death as I imagined how good it would feel with my hands around her scrawny neck, squeezing the life out of her. While knocking off annoying customers was wildly appealing, a horizontally striped prison uniform would make my petite body look like it was the product of a barbershop pole and a fire hydrant having a child. What was the viable alternative? Writing humorous murder mysteries set in the Los Angeles garment center. Brilliant and cathartic! In one fell swoop, eliminate a pain-in-the-patootie buyer, avoid life in prison, and still get the order. It doesn’t get any better than that.
A sentimental trip down memory lane with a colleague was the catalyst for my second series. The Hannah White Mystery series is based on my experience as a high school newspaper investigative reporter. The recently released debut series title, The Case of the Croaked Coach, introduced teenage sleuth Hannah White to my readers.
Now that I’ve given you the inside scoop on my two series, I will share the secret sauce to my writing: character development. Each continuing character is assigned a distinct personality with unique traits, phrasing, and quirks. They grow and evolve personally and professionally in each story. One of the continuing characters always has a personal or professional life-changing event. This intense attention to character development is designed to prevent the cast from becoming stale. It also makes memorable characters readers want to know more about.
I write in the first person to create a more intimate relationship between the characters and readers. Writing in the first person comes with complications that can be tricky to overcome, especially for characters in mysteries. The sleuth can’t be in two places at once and can’t know all and see all the clues to solve the mystery. I overcame this challenge by creating a group of colleagues for the main character/sleuth called the Yentas. These colleagues assist the sleuth in providing critical information as well as opinions regarding how the investigation is proceeding. The Yentas in the Holly Swimsuit Mystery Series and Young Yentas in the Hannah White Mystery Series have proven both pivotal to the plots and popular with readers.
I am a people person, so, developing characters is where I begin when planning a story. Once the characters are created, the plot is built around them, not the reverse. So, how do I develop my characters? All my characters are based on people I have encountered. I take these real people's characteristics, quirks, traits, and personalities as the foundation and then build upon them to create the cast members I want in the tale. Basing my characters on people I know has given my cast a ring of authenticity and that believability has translated into characters readers root for or boo at, but either way, invest in.
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You will see firsthand examples of my writing style in five of my published books:
Title: Rag Lady
Author: Susie Black
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb:
Holly Schlivnik dreams of being a writer, but fate has other plans. A family crisis throws her into an improbable situation and her life will never be the same. Determined to make her own luck when things don’t happen the way she plans, the irrepressible young woman takes a sledgehammer to the glass ceiling and shatters it to smithereens. The wise-cracking, irreverent transplanted Californian goes on a raucous, rollicking rollercoaster ride of hysterical adventures as a ladies' apparel sales rep traveling in the deep South and finds herself along the way.
Excerpt:
Nana blinked her owlish eyes and shrugged. “That’s it?”
Gape-mouthed, I speared her with an incredulous glare. “Yeah, that’s it. Isn’t it enough? I wanna be a writer, not a secretary.”
Nana grinned. “So, you expected to start at the top?”
Duh. Yeah, Nana. Ok, so, I didn’t say it out loud. Of course, Nana came equipped with the grandmother radar thing and figured out I said it to myself.
Nana dipped her head. “You ought to be grateful to the man for giving you a dose of the way the world works. If you’re gonna make it through life intact, you’d better grow a thicker skin. You wanna be a writer? So, write. You better figure out how much you want to be a writer and make sure it’s important enough to fight for. And if not, find something else to believe in, or you’ll live one heck of an empty life.”
I sputtered with the cadence of a car engine missing a sparkplug. “I guess you missed the day they taught Jewish Grandmother nurturing.”
She pointed to my chair and laughed. “You sit in that chair and ask me a question, I tell you what I think, not what I think you want to hear.” She waved a hand of dismissal. “You didn’t get the job you wanted. Boo hoo. Amazing that the world didn’t end. Things happen for a reason. The right thing will come along, and you’ll know it. Sit back and let life happen.”
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Author Biography:
Named Best US Author of the Year by N. N. Lights Book Heaven, award-winning cozy mystery author Susie Black was born in the Big Apple but now calls sunny Southern California home. Like the protagonist in her Holly Swimsuit Mystery Series, Susie is a successful apparel sales executive. Susie began telling stories as soon as she learned to talk. Now she’s telling all the stories from her garment industry experiences in humorous mysteries.
She reads, writes, and speaks Spanish, albeit with an accent that sounds like Mildred from Michigan went on a Mexican vacation and is trying to fit in with the locals. Since life without pizza and ice cream as her core food groups wouldn’t be worth living, she’s a dedicated walker to keep her girlish figure. A voracious reader, she’s also an avid stamp collector and sailor. Susie lives with a highly intelligent man and has one incredibly brainy but smart-aleck adult son who inexplicably blames his sarcasm on an inherited genetic defect.
Looking for more? Contact Susie at:
Website: www.authorsusieblack.com
E-mail: mysteries_@authorsusieblack.com
Social Media Links:
Blue Sky: @hollysusiewrites.bsky.social
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/hollysusie1/
Title: Death by Sample Size
Author: Susie Black
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb:
Everyone wanted her dead…but who actually killed her? The last thing swimwear sales exec Holly Schlivnik expected was to discover ruthless buying office big wig Bunny Frank's corpse trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey with a bikini stuffed down her throat. When Holly's colleague is arrested for Bunny's murder, the wise-cracking, irreverent amateur sleuth jumps into action to find the real killer. Nothing turns out the way Holly thinks it will as she matches wits with a wily murderer hellbent on revenge.
Excerpt:
When the elevator doors opened, I had to stop myself short not to step on her. There was Bunny Frank the buying office big shot, lying diagonally across the car. Her legs were splayed out and her back was propped against the corner. Her sightless eyes were wide open and her arms reached out in a come-to-me baby pose. She was trussed up with shipping tape like a dressed Thanksgiving turkey ready for the oven with a bikini stuffed in her mouth. A Gotham Swimwear hangtag drooped off her lower lip like a toe tag gone lost. Naturally, I burst out laughing.
Before you label me incredibly weird or stone-cold, let me say genetics aren’t all they’re cracked up to be. If you’re lucky you inherit your Aunt Bertha’s sexy long legs or your father’s ability to add a bazillion-dollar order in his head and get the total correct to the last penny. Without even breaking into a sweat, it’s easy to spout at least a million fabulous traits inheritable by the luck of the draw. Did I get those sexy long legs or the ability to add more than two plus two without a calculator? Noooooooooo. Lucky me. I inherited my Nana’s fear of death we overcompensated for it with the nervous habit of laughing. A hysterical reaction? Think Bozo the clown eulogizing your favorite aunt.
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Title: Death by Jelly Beans
Author: Susie Black
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb:
Mermaid Swimwear President Holly Schlivnik discovers the Bainbridge Department Store Easter Bunny slumped over dead and obnoxious swimwear buyer Sue Ellen Magee is arrested for the crime. Despite her differences with the nasty buyer, Holly is convinced the Queen of Mean didn’t do it. The wise-cracking, irreverent amateur sleuth jumps into action to nail the real killer. But the trail has more twists than a pretzel and more turns than a rollercoaster. And nothing turns out how Holly thinks it will as she tangles with a clever killer hellbent on revenge. “Brings a whole new meaning to the rabbit died.”
Excerpt:
I dragged my eyes over to the throne. The Easter Bunny sat slumped over with his chin resting on his chest and his body listing to the right. Good grief. A double-whammy. Not only did he dip into the jellybeans again after being warned not to, but he fell asleep on the job in a booze-infused slumber.
Why should I give a flying fig about the jerk who bowled me over without an apology, let alone helping me up? Yet a stab of unexpected pity pierced my heart. I checked the time. Still a few minutes before my command performance. Maybe rouse the poor guy and give him a chance to concoct another story Sue Ellen might buy unless the security cameras sealed his fate.
I laid my messenger bag on the library table next to the throne and gently shook the rabbit’s left shoulder. Nothing doing. I shook him again. This time a bit harder. I put my lips next to his ears. “Pedro, wake up.” Zilch. Geesh, how much booze did the guy chug? Or maybe booze isn’t the culprit. Perhaps the guy had a late night before or he is just one helluva sound sleeper? Oddly, he wasn’t snoring, but I attributed it to his neck bent down and his head dangling over his body. I shook him again and got nothing for my trouble. His chest wasn’t rising and falling. I shook him again and got nothing for my trouble. His chest wasn’t rising and falling.
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Title: The Case of the Croaked Coach
Author: Susie Black
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Publisher: Next Chapter Publishing
Book Blurb:
There wasn’t an honest bone in Buzz Bixby’s body. The Encino High School’s head football coach was an equal-opportunity scoundrel. Bixby cheated and lied his way to the top and screwed anyone and everyone in his wake. So, the question wasn’t who wanted the bastard dead. The question was, who didn’t?
Student reporter Hannah White’s interview with the coach is a nonstarter when she discovers varsity football hero Dean Snyder standing over Bixby’s battered corpse holding a bloody trophy. Despite how guilty Dean looks, Hannah is convinced he’s innocent. When Snyder is arrested for Bixby’s murder, the wise-cracking, irreverent amateur sleuth jumps into action to flesh out the real killer.
But the trail has more twists and turns than a slinky, and nothing turns out how Hannah thinks it will as she tangles with a clever killer hellbent on revenge.
Excerpt:
“So, other than picking up the trophy for some idiotic reason, did you do anything else?”
He made a sour face.
He pointed the trophy at the corpse. “Is he dead?”
It’s not as though I’m an expert on the subject. The only dead body I’ve ever seen in person was Cindy Butler’s Grandma Ethel’s at her funeral last June.
Dean bent over to examine the coach’s crumpled body. “I’ve never been around a dead body before. How do you tell?”
The back of the guy’s head is smashed in like roadkill. How much more proof do you need?
I rolled my eyes. “Well, since he hasn’t so much as twitched since I got here, I’d say it’s a safe bet the next game Bixby coaches is gonna be played in the stadium located at the Great Beyond.”
I used my shirt sleeve to pick up the phone receiver.
Dean gulped. “Who are you calling?”
Is this guy for real?
“Donofrio’s Pizzeria. Dead bodies give me the munchies.” I smacked his forehead with the heel of my hand. “For crying out loud, Dean! Who do you think I’m calling? The police!” I tsked, “Something anyone with a brain does the minute Bixby’s body is discovered.”
Dean whined as cranky as a toddler who needed a nap. “Why? No one knows we’re here. Can’t we just leave and let somebody else call the cops?”
I gritted my teeth. “Because it is against the law to leave the scene of a crime.”
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Title: Death by Dreidel
Author: Susie Black
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb:
Mermaid Swimwear President Holly Schlivnik attends an industry Hanukkah party to honor Rapido Swimwear CEO Leni Waxman as the Mount Cedars Hospital Woman of the Year. The guest of honor collapses and dies in the middle of the event. An autopsy confirms that industry bully Leni expired as a result of poisoning by coming in contact with a purposely contaminated dreidel. When Holly’s business partner is wrongly arrested for Leni’s murder, the wise-cracking, irreverent snoop sticks her nose everywhere it doesn’t belong to flesh out the real killer. But the trail has more twists and turns than a rollercoaster and nothing turns out the way Holly thinks it will as she takes on a ruthless killer hellbent on revenge.
Excerpt:
Queenie’s eyes twinkled. “Since Buddy no longer has any competition, did your mother reserve the wedding venue?”
As I opened my mouth to make a snappy reply, the temperature dropped fifty degrees. I shivered and pulled my blazer tightly around my shoulders as the two spinning whirls of freezing air I’d become a tad too familiar with spun counterclockwise as twin tornados swirled down, and landed next to me.
Grinning from ear to ear, the ghosts of Marie and Justine LaValle bounced around like a couple of runaway beach balls and did their high-step version of the happy dance, replete with a synchronized wave and an ass-shaking hokey-pokey-style finale.
Once they finished their routine, Marie put her thumb and index finger between her lips and blew out an ear-splitting victory whistle. If she wasn’t already an apparition, her whistle would wake the dead. She raised her arms above her head and squealed, “Praise Heaven above and Hallelujah! Our prayers have finally been answered.”
She skidded her palms across one another. “Ah say, goodbye and good riddance. It’s about time the damned fool cop realized the error of his ways and said adios. What took him so long to figure out he had no chance of winning your hand as long as I am around is simply beyond me.” She wagged her index finger at me. “Ah declare, that man is almost as slow on the uptake as you, and hand to God, Ah didn’t think it possible.”
Buy Links:
Amazon: Amazon.com : Death by Dreidel
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/death-by-dreidel-susie-black/1147055032?ean=2940184541495
